What is the process of maintaining information in memory over time called?

The process of maintaining information in memory over time is best described as storage. Storage refers to the organizational and preservation aspects of memory, where information is kept for later use. It encompasses the processes that allow us to hold onto information after it has been encoded and before it is retrieved.

In the context of memory, encoding is about transforming information into a format that can be stored, while retention implies the ongoing keeping of that information in memory. Recall specifically refers to the ability to access and retrieve that stored information when needed. Thus, storage specifically addresses the maintenance and preservation of memories over varying lengths of time, making it the most accurate choice in this context.